Lottery millionaires from Hartlepool say they want to keep giving
Frances and Paddy Connolly say they've already given away more than half of their £115m fortune
A lottery winning couple from Hartlepool say they've already given away around 60 million pounds - and want to donate more.
Frances and Paddy Connolly - who are originally from Northern Ireland - won £115m in the Euromillions in 2019, and immediately gave away large chunks of cash to friends and family.
Since then, the 55-year-old former social worker and teacher has set up two charitable foundations, one named after her late mother in their native Northern Ireland, and the PFC Trust in Hartlepool, where the couple have lived for 30 years.
Now, Frances has revealed she has already passed the charity budget she agreed with her husband for this year - saying she's addicted to giving to others.
She said helping others, whether with money or by volunteering her time, lifted people's spirits during lockdown.
She said: "It gives you a buzz and it's addictive.
"I'm addicted to it now."
Young carers are particularly close to her heart, and the trust and personal donations have bought two caravans so they can go on respite breaks.
Mrs Connolly conceded she cannot "cure poverty" on her own, so she set up the trusts to get the backing of other people, supported by the groups she is setting out to help.
Asked why she was happy to give so much away, she said: "Oh, who needs all that money?
"Why wouldn't you?"
Their biggest expenditure after their win was a six-bedroom house in County Durham with seven acres of land, while Mr Connolly drives a second-hand Aston Martin.
She said when she saw a TV show where someone in Monaco spent £25,000 on a bottle of champagne, she immediately thought that could have put a young person on the property ladder.
Mr Connolly still runs plastic businesses, while Mrs Connolly devotes her time to the trusts, which have backed local community groups to help people get into work, buy electronic tablets for old people so they can connect with their families, and supported refugees.